2nd Day of Talks Over N.K.`s Nuclear Weapons Program Concludes

North Korea, the U.S. and China began making compromises to resolve the crisis over the North`s nuclear weapons program on Thursday, the second day of trilateral talks currently being held at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing, China.

At the meeting, delegates from the three nations were reported to have given their own views based on positions the three nations agreed upon during the first day of the talks and suggested scheduling plans for follow-up meetings.

In the morning of the same day, the delegates held discussions, and the U.S. and China had bilateral talks to discuss ways to persuade Pyongyang to give up its nuclear ambitions, diplomatic sources said.

"The U.S. is trying to find out Pyongyang`s real position on whether it will dismantle its nuclear weapons program," said a diplomatic source. "At today`s meeting, Pyongyang seemed to convey its position to Washington to some extent."

At the meeting, the U.S. stressed that North Korea should dismantle its nuclear program permanently and in a verifiable way and that the issue is a non-negotiable item.

"The nuclear crisis resulted from the hostile policy of the U.S. towards the North and its threat to the North Korean regime. Therefore, if the U.S. withdraws its policy, North Korea is quite prepared to wipe away any U.S. concerns," North Korean delegates said.

According to a diplomatic source, given that all three parties acknowledge the need for a peaceful settlement of the nuclear crisis, progress is expected as seen in the scheduling of the follow-up meetings.

Meanwhile, in a press briefing on April 23 (local time), White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said that President George W. Bush hopes that the meeting will make a significant contribution to peace on the Korean Peninsula. He also said that a way to establish peace on the peninsula is for Pyongyang to agree on the permanent dismantling of its nuclear weapons program.

"Delegates from the three nations stated their positions and China is actively participating in these trilateral talks," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.